Distribution, Abundance and Composition of Zooplankton in the South China Sea, Area I :Gulf of Thailand and East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia

Similar documents
Distribution, Abundance and Composition of Zooplankton in the South China Sea, Area II: Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei Darussalam Waters.

Temperature, Salinity, Dissolved Oxygen and Water Masses of Vietnamese Waters

Co-Principal Investigators Stephen C. Jewett, Ph.D. Paul C. Rusanowski, Ph.D.

Zooplankton community structure in the northern Gulf of Mexico: Implications for ecosystem management

Recruitment processes of jack mackerel (Trachurus

Identifying linkages between zooplankton dynamics, fishery resources and climate change in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Proceedings of the Second Workshop on Scientific Results of FORV Sugar Sampudu

Seasonal Variation of Stratification in the Gulf of Thailand

Species Diversity of Plankton in Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Samut Songkhram Campus

Zooplankton community changes on the Canadian northwest Atlantic continental shelves during recent warm years

Arthropoda diversity

Activity Report: Plankton Group from 2006 to the present

Geostrophic and Tidal Currents in the South China Sea, Area III: West Philippines

The Oscillating Control Hypothesis Reassessment in view of New Information from the Eastern Bering Sea

Decadal scale linkages between climate dynamics & fish production in Chesapeake Bay and beyond

ZOOPLANKTON BIOMASS ALONG THE WEST COAST OF INDIA AND ITS EFFECT ON THE FISHERY

Food web: evaluate the relationship between postlarval biodiversity and plankton communities (phyto- and zooplankton), in Northwest Mediterranean sea.

Is Arctic zooplankton. sleeping in the winter?

Ecological Interactions in Coastal Marine Ecosystems: Rock Lobster

Introduction. Materials and Methods

NATURAL VARIABILITY OF MACRO-ZOOPLANKTON AND LARVAL FISHES OFF THE KIMBERLEY, NW AUSTRALIA: PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

Tropical Scombrid Feeding Habits in the Central Pacific Kevin McLean S-199 June 9, 2005

Fine-Scale Survey of Right and Humpback Whale Prey Abundance and Distribution

Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence Sea Scallop

Prey-predator interactions between the myctophid Bentosema glaciale and calanoid copepods in the Labrador Sea

Observed pattern of diel vertical migration of Pacific mackerel larvae and its implication for spatial distribution off the Korean Peninsula

Zooplankton Abundance and Composition in Surf Zone of Gopalpur Port, East Coast of India-A Case Study

MANAGEMENT OF KRILL AS AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF THE CALIFORNIA CURRENT ECOSYSTEM

Atsuko YAMAGUCHI. Since the catches of these fish decrease as the waters, including those around western Kyushu and

Minute on Bangkok Meeting 3 April 2006,

6 th Meeting of the Scientific Committee Puerto Varas, Chile, 9-14 September SC6-Doc15 The Russian Federation s Annual Report

< Ocean Conditions and Salmon Forecasting

Long term changes in zooplankton size distribution in the Peruvian Humboldt Current System: Conditions favouring sardine or anchovy

Spring plankton surveys in the Blackwater Estuary:

STATUS OF FISH LARVAE STUDY IN MALAYSIA. ZULKIFLI BIN TALIB ABD HARIS HILMI BIN AHMAD ARSHAD AHMAD HUSIN BIN ALIAS Department of Fisheries Malaysia

Zooplankton Availability to. Larval Walleye (Sander vitreus) in Black Lake, MI, USA

Kingfishes (whitings), Menticirrhus spp.

Map Showing NAFO Management Units

Essential Fish Habitat Description Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua)

Final report on fish diet and stomach analyses

Plankton Activity Cards

Michael Tehan, Assistant Regional Administrator, Interior Columbia Basin Office

THE SECOND ANNUAL SURVEY (1987) OF THE BENTHIC AND PELAGIC COMMUNITIES OF SINGAPORE RIVER

Countermeasures against Alien Fishes (Largemouth Bass and Bluegill) in Lake Biwa

LAKE WASHINGTON SOCKEYE SALMON STUDIES. Richard E. Thorne and James J. Dawson

ASMFC Stock Assessment Overview: Red Drum

Fish Conservation and Management

Sampling Gears and other method. Teerapong Duangdee: Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Fisheries, Kasetsart University

Mid-Continent Ecology Division Jack Kelly Peder Yurista. University of WI - Superior

Alexander V. Zavolokin, Alexander Ya. Efimkin, Alexander M. Slabinskiy, and Natalya S. Kosenok

Distribution and abundance of demersal fish and invertebrate fauna around the

Summary of Research within Lamlash Bay No-Take Zone - Science report for COAST July

HADDOCK ON THE SOUTHERN SCOTIAN SHELF AND IN THE BAY OF FUNDY (DIV. 4X/5Y)

System of Plankton Database Opening to the Public in Lake Biwa

STATUS OF EXPLOITED MARINE FISHERY RESOURCES OF INDIA

TUNA RESEARCH IN INDIA

EXPLORATORY SURVEY ALONG THE SOUTH-WEST COAST OF INDIA WITH REFERENCE TO THE USE OF TRY-NET K.J. MATHEW AND A.K. KESAVAN NAIR

SMALL BOAT TUNA LONGLINE FISHERY NORTH-WEST COAST OF SRI LANKA R. Maldeniya

Review of the Zooplankton Sampling and Processing Methods Used during BASIS Cruises 2002

Ocean Conditions, Salmon, and Climate Change

Commercial Fisheries in the South Coast s Marine Protected Areas

The Oscillating Control Hypothesis Reassessment in view of New Information from the Eastern Bering Sea

El Nino and Global Warming

Office of Science & Technology

Mapping & modelling of winter ichthyoplankton distribution in the Channel & Southern North Sea

Western Atlantic Bluefin Tuna: Median estimates of spawning biomass and recruitment (ICCAT)

A Combined Recruitment Index for Demersal Juvenile Cod in NAFO Divisions 3K and 3L

11. Annex 6 Taxon Group Composition, Diversity, Biomass and Production of the Benthic Infaunal Invertebrate Community

Your web browser (Safari 7) is out of date. For more security, comfort and the best experience on this site: Update your browser Ignore

Requirements for Animal Life. Phylum Bryozoa. Colonial Bryozoans. A lophophore is a structure used for:

Essential Fish Habitat Description Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus)

The fishery for jack mackerel in the Eastern Central Pacific by European trawlers in 2008 and 2009

MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES Vol. 202: , 2000 Published August 28 Mar Ecol Prog Ser

Managing Chesapeake Bay s Land Use, Fish Habitat, and Fisheries: Studies. Jim Uphoff & Margaret McGinty, Fisheries Service

NATIONAL BIORESOURCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD Dept. of Biotechnology Government of India, New Delhi

Sheepshead Fishery Overview South Atlantic State/Federal Management Board May 2014 Introduction Life History Landings

Kingdom Animalia. Lab Exercise 23. Objectives. Introduction

ADVANCED INVERTEBRATES HAVE COMPLEX BODIES AND INTERNAL SYSTEMS

NATIONAL BIORESOURCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD Dept. of Biotechnology Government of India, New Delhi

Аnastasia S. Dolganova, R.G. Bezrukov Vladivostok, Russia

The Pelagic Zone.! The open ocean is called the pelagic zone.!

The Emerging View of New England Cod Stock Structure

SEA GRANT PROGRESS REPORT

Temperature Main thermocline is present in the mesopelagic Relatively constant at the ocean depths, below 1000m About 35 F = 2 C

Figure 1. Pair trawlers are in operation.

Section 6. The Surface Circulation of the Ocean. What Do You See? Think About It. Investigate. Learning Outcomes

Exploration of ecosystem factors responsible for coherent recruitment patterns of Pacific cod and walleye pollock in the eastern Bering Sea

First Results of Zooplankton and Fish Studies. B. Christiansen, Anneke Denda, Henrik Christiansen

Title: SYSTEM OF PLANKTON DATABASE OPENING TO THE PUBLIC IN LAKE BIWA. Satoshi ICHISE*,Tetsuya WAKABAYASHI*, Kenji YAMASHITA*and Shigeru AOKI*

Currents measurements in the coast of Montevideo, Uruguay

Atlantic croaker, Micropogonias undulatus (Linnaeus, 1766)

A STUDY ON THE PRAWN FISHERY OF NETRAVATI-GURUPUR ESTUARY, MANGALORE., Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute Centre, Mangalore.

ENSO and monsoon induced sea level changes and their impacts along the Indian coastline

Capelin in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence

Recent Environmental Conditions and BC Salmon Outlook to 2020

ZOOPLANKTON. Zooplankton: 2. Crustaceans Copepods. Diverse -- protozoans and others

ENSO: El Niño Southern Oscillation

Impact of climate variability and change on winter survival of Bristol Bay sockeye salmon

Fluctuations of pelagic fish populations and climate shifts in the Far-East regions

Cod distribution and temperature in the North Sea

Transcription:

Distribution, Abundance and Composition of Zooplankton in the South China Sea, Area I :Gulf of Thailand and East Coast of Jutamas Jivaluk Department of Fisheries, Chatuchak, Bangkok, Thailand ABSTRACT The sample of stations in the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of were collected by M.V.SEAFDEC on September - October for the pre northeast monsoon period and on April - May for the post-northeast monsoon period. groups of zooplankton were found in this study. Copepod was the most abundant in both period followed by Chaetognatha in pre-monsoon and Ostracod in post-monsoon. Biomass and abundance vary from. -. ml/m and -, no/m in pre-monsoon and. -. ml/m and -, no/m in postmonsoon respectively. There was significant difference for abundance between pre and post-monsoon period (at % level). But there was no significant difference between biomass for both period. Key words: zooplankton, the Gulf of Thailand, Introduction Marine zooplankton serve a key role in the food chains of the sea as they transfer energy from the phytoplankton to higher tropic levels. In the context of fisheries biology, the transfer of energy to the fish stocks is of particular interest, especially during the first weeks in the life of the fish, as the survival of the larvae. Previous investigations of zooplankton in the Gulf of Thailand have been done since. Many papers concerned the seasonal abundance and distribution of zooplankton in the Gulf of Thailand were based on the results of the NAGA Expedition during - (Brinton, Suvapepun, : Suwanrumpha, a and Suvapepun, ). Few studies have been made on copepod (Suvapepun and Suwanrumpha, : Suwanrumpha, b ), salps (Suwanrumpha, ), fish larvae (Chayakul, ), shrimp larvae (Tubtimsang, a ) and invertebrate larvae (Tubtimsang, b ). However, at least species of zooplankton have been record in this region (Suvapepun, ). The propose of the present investigation is to describe the zooplankton community in the gulf of Thailand and, and provide an estimation of abundance, composition, biomass and their distribution. Methods The sample of stations in the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of were collected by M.V.SEAFDEC on September - October for the pre monsoon period and on April - May for the post-monsoon period. Station no. was omitted (Table and Figure ). The oblique tow was made from the surface to ~ m above the bottom with. mm bongo net fitted with the mouth flow-meter. The sampling time was approximately minutes with the ship speed was about knots. The samples were preserved in % buffered formalin-seawater immediately. In the laboratory, the displacement volume of total zooplankton was measured after large gelatinous zooplankton had been removed. The samples were sub-sampled with Folsom Plankton Splitter and then counted to taxon. Data on biomass and abundance were standardized per cubic meter. --

Fig.. d e L a titu Results Area and stations of collaborative research survey in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Biomass and abundance of total zooplankton Pre-monsoon period Biomass and abundance of total zooplankton were showed in Fig. and. Biomass vary from.-. ml/m which station (near Pattani bay) has the highest biomass. Abundance vary from -, no/m which station (near Pattani bay) has the highest abundance. Post-monsoon period Biomass and abundance of total zooplankton were showed in Fig. and. Biomass vary from. -. ml/m which station (near Ko Samui) has the highest biomass. Abundance vary from - no/m which station (near Amphor Sattahip) has the highest abundance. It is obvious that the abundance was high in the upper part of the Gulf of Thailand, near Ko Samui and the lower part of. In post-monsoon period, there were stations (. %) which increase in biomass while stations (. % ) were decrease and stations (. %) were constant (Table and ). For abundance, in post-monsoon period, there were stations ( %) which increase in abundance while stations (. %) were decrease and stations (. %) were constant (Table and ). T-test (Table ) shows the significant difference for abundance between pre and post-monsoon --

Table. Information of the stations in the study areas. Stn. Pre-NE monsoon Post-NE monsoon Position Depth No. Date Time Date Time (m) // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E - - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E // - // - - N - E --

Table. Biomass of zooplankton (ml./m ) in the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of Peninsular : pre = pre-monsoon post = post-monsoon Station pre post Station pre post Station pre post................................................................................................................................................................ Table. Total abundance of zooplankton (ml./m ) in the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of : pre = pre-ne monsoon, post = post-ne monsoon Station pre post Station pre post Station pre post,,,,,,, --

Table. Differences of total abundance and biomass of zooplankton from the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of in the pre- and post-northeast monsoon periods. Abundance Biomass No. of station Percentage No. of station Percentage Increase. Decrease.. Constant.. Table. Probability (p) of null hypothesis (significant p <.) from t-test for comparing biomass and abundance at pre- and post-northeast monsoon period. P Biomass. Abundance. Table. Taxonomic list of zooplankton found in the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of. The average abundance of zooplankton: +++ = very commom (> no./m ) ++ = common (- no./m ) + = rare (- no./m ). pre = pre-ne monsoon period ( September - October ) post = post-ne monsoon period ( April - May ) Taxon Abundance Taxon Abundance pre post pre post Medusae + + Phyllosoma larvae + + Siphonophora +++ +++ Shrimp larvae ++ ++ Ctenophora + + Anomura larvae + +++ Nemertinea + + Brachyura larvae + + Cyphonautes larvae + + Stomatopod larvae + + Actinotroch larvae + + Heteropoda + + Chaetognatha +++ +++ Pteropoda ++ +++ Polychaeta + + Cephalopoda + + Cladocera + ++ Gastropod larvae +++ +++ Ostracoda +++ +++ Bivalve larvae ++ ++ Copepoda +++ +++ Echinodermata larvae + + Cirripedia larvae - + Larvacean +++ +++ Amphipoda + +++ Thaliacea + ++ Isopoda + - Brachiopod larvae + + Mysidacea + + Crustacean nauplii + + Cumacea + + Fish eggs + + Euphausiacea + - Fish larvae + + Lucifer spp. +++ + --

period (at % level). But there is no significant difference between biomass for both period. Taxonomic composition groups of zooplankton were found in this study (Table and ). Copepod dominated the zooplankton community with average and no/m (. % and. % composition) in the pre-monsoon and the post-monsoon respectively. Followed by Chaetognatha (average no/m with. % composition) in pre-monsoon and Ostracod (average no/m with. % composition) in post-monsoon (Table ). Distribution of individual taxa Medusae In pre-monsoon period, the medusae were found to be very common. Large number were observed in station and ( and no/m respectively) which were in the east coast of Peninsular. But in post-monsoon period, Large number were observed in station ( no/m ) which were in the Gulf of Thailand. Furthermore, the number of individual of medusae was higher in post-monsoon period than in pre monsoon period in the great number of the stations. However, most of medusae distributed near shore rather than offshore (Fig. and ). Siphonophora Siphonophora were observed to be very common in both area. The amount of siphonophora was increase in post-monsoon period for. - times in every stations (except station no. ). Nevertheless, there were more abundant in nearshore samples for both period (Fig. and ). Ctenophora Ctenophora found to be rare in this investigation. The percent occurrence was. % in premonsoon and. % in post-monsoon. The greatest number were no/m at station no. (near Ko Samui) in pre-monsoon period and no/m at station (near Amphor Sattahip). Most of them were found in the Gulf of Thailand. However, there were more abundant in nearshore samples for both period (Fig. and ). Nemertinea Nemertinea were rare in pre-monsoon period (. % occurrence) but quite common in postmonsoon period (. % occurrence). The abundance was high in post-monsoon period and the distribution were similar in patterns for both of samples taken at nearshore and offshore(fig. and ). Cyphonautes larvae Cyphonautes larvae were common in pre-monsoon period (% occurrence) but rare in postmonsoon period (% occurrence). The abundance was high in pre-monsoon period (Fig. and ). Actinotroch larvae For both period, Actinotroch larvae were quite rare and abundance were occurrence (Fig. ). Chaetognatha Chaetognatha were the second most abundant component in pre-monsoon period but were the forth abundant component in post-monsoon period. Station (near Pattani Bay) and station (near Prachuap Khiri Khan) had the highest abundance in pre-monsoon period. While station had the highest abundance in post-monsoon period. The patterns of distribution were similar for the near --

Table. Taxonomic list of zooplankton found in the Gulf of Thailand and the East Coast of. Frequency of occurrence is shown as; R = Rare C = Common VC = Very Common. pre = pre-ne monsoon period ( September - October ) post = post-ne monsoon period ( April - May ) Taxon Frequency Taxon Frequency pre post pre post Medusae VC VC Phyllosoma larvae C C Siphonophora VC VC Shrimp larvae VC VC Ctenophora R R Anomura larvae VC VC Nemertinea R VC Brachyura larvae VC VC Cyphonautes larvae VC R Stomatopod larvae VC VC Actinotroch larvae R R Heteropoda VC VC Chaetognatha VC VC Pteropoda VC VC Polychaeta VC VC Cephalopoda C C Cladocera VC VC Gastropod larvae VC VC Ostracoda VC VC Bivalve larvae VC VC Copepoda VC VC Echinodermata larvae VC VC Cirripedia larvae - R Larvacean VC VC Amphipoda VC VC Thaliacea VC VC Isopoda R - Brachiopod larvae R R Mysidacea VC VC Crustacean nauplii VC VC Cumacea R R Fish eggs VC VC Euphausiacea R - Fish larvae VC VC Lucifer spp. VC VC Table. Percent composition of some zooplankton in the Gulf of Thailand and the East coast of in the pre-and post-northeast monsoon periods. Pre-monsoon Post-monsoon Rank Taxon Per cent Taxon Per cent composition composition Copepoda. Copepoda. Chaetognatha. Ostracoda. Ostracoda. Siphonophora. Siphonophora. Chaetognatha. Gastropod larvae. Gastropod larvae. Lucifer spp.. Amphipoda. Laevacean. Pteropod. Shrimp larvae. Laevacean. Pteropod. Shrimp larvae. Bivalve larvae. Anomura larvae. --

shore and offshore stations in post-monsoon period. But in pre-monsoon period, the number of chaetognatha taken from the near shore stations were higher than the offshore stations (Fig. and ). Polychaeta Polychaet larvae were observed to be fairly common even though the number of them were not so high. However, the number of organisms were higher in pre-monsoon than post-monsoon period. Higher abundance occurred near shore than offshore for both period. In the post-monsoon period, polychaet were absent in the east coast of (Fig. and ). Cladocera Cladocera were the regular component in the samples in this investigation. Station (near Chumphon) had the highest abundance in pre-monsoon period. While station and station had the highest abundance in post-monsoon period. Higher abundance occurred near shore than offshore for both period especially in the Gulf of Thailand (Fig. and ). Ostracoda Ostracoda were the third most abundant in pre-monsoon period and the second most abundant in post-monsoon period. They were observed to be common in this study area. In post-monsoon showed higher abundance than in pre-monsoon period. However, in pre-monsoon period the ostracoda distributed near shore rather than off shore while in the post-monsoon period the patterns of distribution were similar (Fig. and ). Copepoda Copepoda dominated the zooplankton in this investigation in both season. They consisted.% and.% of zooplankton population in pre and post-monsoon respectively. Number of copepod were increase in post-monsoon period in most of the stations. There were higher abundance at near shore than offshore stations in both period (Fig. and ). Cirripedia larvae Cirripedia larvae were very rare in this study. They found only - no./m during post-monsoon and none in pre-monsoon (Fig. ) Amphipoda Amphipoda were very common. High number of abundance occurred near shore in both period. There are no differences in number between pre and post-monsoon period (Fig. and ). Isopoda Isopoda were very rare in this study. The percentage of occurrence was in pre-monsoon and in post-monsoon period (Fig. ). Mysidacea The per cent occurrence of mysidacea was quite high for both period. They were abundant from the lower part of the Gulf of Thailand along the east coast of. Most of them distributed off shore rather than near shore. However, the abundance in post-monsoon was higher than in pre-monsoon (Fig. and ). Cumacea Cumacea were occasionally present in zooplankton samples especially along the east coast of --

. The average abundance in both period were not difference. Cumacea number were high at near shore stations in pre-monsoon period but there were similar in post-monsoon period (Fig. and ). Euphausiacea Euphausiacea were very rare in this study. They found only per cent occurrence in premonsoon period and none in post-monsoon period (Fig. ). Lucifer spp. Lucifer spp. were very common. They were abundant in the upper part of Gulf of Thailand, Pattani Bay and near shore along the east coast of in pre-monsoon period. Although they found to be most abundant in the upper part of Gulf of Thailand, near Ko Samui and the lower part of in post-monsoon period. The distribution pattern were similar for both nearshore and offshore stations (Fig. and ). Phyllosoma larvae Phyllosoma larvae were found to be irregular in this area. The largest number in post-monsoon was found near Ko Samui. However, The average abundance showed no differences between both period (Fig. and ). Shrimp larvae Shrimp larvae were the regular component in the zooplankton population. The great number were found near shore in both season especially at Pattani Bay in pre-monsoon period ( no/m ) and in the upper part of the Gulf of Thailand in post-monsoon period ( no/m ). The average abundance showed no differences between both period(fig. and ). Anomura larvae Anomura larvae were common organisms. The average abundance was higher in post-monsoon period ( no/m ) than in pre-monsoon period ( no/m ). The distribution was dispersed nearshore and offshore (Fig. and ). Brachyura larvae Brachyura larvae occurred regularly in the zooplankton samples. They found most abundant at Pattani Bay and nearshore stations in pre-monsoon period. The post-monsoon period showed the same pattern of distribution but the great number was no/m near Ko Samui (station ). The average abundance of brachyura larvae was higher in pre-monsoon ( no/m ) than in post-monsoon period ( no/m ) (Fig. and ). Stomatopod larvae Stomatopod larvae were very common. The average abundant in both season showed no differences. The distribution was scattered throughout the study area (Fig. and ). Heteropoda Heteropoda were very common. In pre-monsoon period, the abundance was high near shore along the east coast of whereas in post-monsoon they were scattered throughout the study areas. However the average abundance in both season showed no differences (Fig. and ). Pteropoda Pteropoda were very common. The average abundant of them was a little bit higher in post- --

monsoon (. no/m than in pre-monsoon period (. no/m ). Pteropods number were high at nearshore stations (Fig. and ). Cephalopoda larvae Cephalopoda larvae were quite seldom in this study. The average number for both period was no differences. Anyway, they dispersed throughout the study area (Fig. and ). Gastropod larvae Gastropod larvae were very common. They occurred in considerable number during pre and post monsoon period. However, the abundance of gastropod in post-monsoon was a little bit higher than in pre-monsoon. They found high number near Pattani Bay and along the lower part of Peninsular in pre-monsoon while along the middle through the lower part part of the Gulf of Thailand in post-monsoon period (Fig. and ). Bivalve larvae Bivalve larvae were observed to be very common but not in large number. There was no differences in both period. The distribution was scattered (Fig. and ). Echinodermata larvae Echinodermata larvae consisted of asteroidea (star fish larvae), holothuroidea (sea cucumber larvae), echinoidea (sea urchin larvae), ophiuroidea (brittle star larvae) and crinoidea (feather star larvae). They were the regular component in the plankton samples in this study but not in large number. The result showed no differences between both period. Most of the echinodermata larvae dispersed nearshore in pre-monsoon and scattered in post-monsoon period (Fig. and ). Larvacean Larvacean were very common but found in small number. The number increased in post-monsoon period. The abundance of larvacean occurred nearshore. The highest number was station (near Pattani Bay) and station in in pre-monsoon while the upper part of the Gulf of Thailand and near Ko Samui were rich in Lavacean number in post-monsoon period (Fig. and ). Thaliacea Thaliacea (tunicates or salps) were observed to be very common. The number of thaliacea was increased in post-monsoon period in most of the stations. Thaliacea number were high at nearshore stations especially in the middle part of the Gulf of Thailand in post-monsoon (Fig. and ). Brachiopod larvae Brachiopod larvae were occasionally present in low number. In pre-monsoon the abundance were found at around Battani Bay and the end of but in post-monsoon there were found at the upper gulf of Thailand and the end of. There were no differences in number in both period (Fig. and ). Crustacean Nauplii Crustacean Nauplii occurred regularly in the plankton samples but not in high number. The number were increased in post-monsoon period. However, the abundance occurred in the nearshore stations in both period (Fig. and ). --

Fish eggs and Fish larvae This important component of the meroplankton appeared in considerable number during pre and post monsoon period. The abundance of fish larvae and fish eggs in pre-monsoon occurred near Ko Samui, Battani Bay and station. In post-monsoon period, the abundant of fish larvae was near Ko Samui but fish eggs was around Prachuap Khiri Khan Bay. The number of fish larvae and fish eggs increased in post-monsoon period in some area (Fig. - ). Discussion The biomass of zooplankton in the Gulf of Thailand in this study was higher than the pass which had range from. to. ml/ m in (Suvapepan, ). In general, the plankton biomass off the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand was lower than that in the Inner Gulf and Upper western coast. Highest plankton density in the Inner Gulf was. ml/m in December (Suvapepan, ). The mean abundance of zooplankton in the Gulf of Thailand was slightly increased from - and the patterns of zooplankton distribution were unchanged (Sribyatta, ). The present observation showed that zooplankton collected comprises a great variety of organisms and copepod was the main group. The result agree with various workers who reported that copepod was the most important groups and wildly distributed in the Inner Gulf and the western coast of the Gulf of Thailand (Suvapepan, : Suwanrumpha, : Sudara and Udomkit, and Temiyavanich, ). It is obvious that the monsoon affect the zooplankton abundance and their distribution. In postmonsoon period, many organisms were increased in number such as Siphonophora, Cladocera, Ostracoda, Amphipoda, Mysidacea, Anomura larvae Pteropoda and Gastropod larvae. Some organisms were decreased such as Polychaet and Lucifer spp. Sribyatta () also found higher number of zooplankton in the northeast monsoon and southwest monsoon. According to Suvapepan () and Suwanrumpha () they concluded that in the Inner Gulf of Thailand periods of high and low zooplankton number coincided with the periods of the two monsoons: with minimum density occurred during the intermonsoons in April and October and that seasonal distribution of different zooplanktonic groups and the species composition are effected by prevailing hydrographical condition induced by the monsoons. Overall on the shelf, nutrients, phytoplankton and zooplankton show significant positive covariance (Hopcroft and Roff, ). This is true also in the Inner Gulf of Thailand whereas Sudara and Udomkit () found that major factor influencing the distribution of zooplankton seems to be the amount of nutrients available. Besides, Tamiyavanich () found the zooplankton abundance had significant correlation to the phytoplankton. Salinity also acts as the major factor determining the variability of zooplankton abundance (Sribyatta, ) while temperature is the minor factor (Suwanrumpha, ). Acknowledgements Appreciation is extended to the Southeast Asian Fisheries Developement Center for supporting this research. Thanks are extened to Captain, crews and scientists on the M.V. SEAFDEC for their help in the sampling. Ms. Penjan Rochana-anawat, Ms. Suvimon Sae-Koe and Ms. Siriporn Seurungreong are thanked for preparing the manuscrips. Finally, I wish to thank Mr. Boonlert Phasuk for constructive criticism of the manuscript. --

....... Fig.. Biomass of total zooplankton (ml/m ) Fig.. Biomass of total zooplankton (ml/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Fig.. Abundance of total zooplankton (no/ m ) Fig.. Abundance of total zooplankton (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the of --

Fig.. Distribution of Medusae (no/m ) of Fig.. Distribution of Medusae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular - Fig.. Distribution of Siphonophora (no/m ) Fig.. Distribution of Siphonophora (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular --

Fig.. Distribution of Ctenophora (no/m ) of Fig.. Distribution of Nemertinea (no/m ) of -... -. Fig.. Distribution of Ctenophora (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Fig.. Distribution of Nemertinea (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of -..... -. --

.. Fig..... -. Distribution of Cyphonautes lavae (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Fig...... -. Distribution of Cyphonautes larvae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of..... -. Fig.. Distribution of Actinotrocha (no/m ) of Fig.. Distribution of Chaetognatha (no/m ) of --

- Fig.. Distribution of Chaetognatha (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Fig.. Distribution of Polychaeta (no/m ) of - Fig.. Distribution of Polychaeta (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of Fig.. Distribution of Cladocera (no/m ) of --

- - Fig.. Distribution of Cladocera (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of Fig.. Distribution of Ostracoda (no/m ) of - Fig.. Distribution of Ostracoda (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of Fig.. Distribution of Copepoda (no/m ) of --

... -. Fig.. Distribution of Copepoda (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of Fig.. Distribution of Cirripedia Larvae (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of - Fig.. Distribution of Amphipoda (no/m ) of Fig.. Distribution of Amphipoda (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of --

Fig.. Distribution of Mysidacea (no/m ) of -. Fig.. Distribution of Mysidacea (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the... Fig.. Distribution of Cumercea (no/m ) of -. Fig.. Distribution of Cumacea (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of - --

- Fig..Distribution of Lucifer spp. (no/m ) Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Lucifer spp. (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Phyllosoma larvae (no/ m ) -.... -. Fig..Distribution of Phyllosoma larvae (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the --

- Fig..Distribution of Shrimp larvae (no/m ) Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Shrimp larvae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Anomura larvae (no/ m ) Fig..Distribution of Anomura larvae (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of --

- Fig..Distribution of Brachyura larvae (no/m ) Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Brachyura larvae (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the - Fig..Distribution of Stomatopod larvae (no/ m ) Fig..Distribution of Stomatopod larvae (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the --

- Fig..Distribution of Heteropoda (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Heteropoda (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of - Fig..Distribution of Pteropoda (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Pteropoda (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the of --

Fig..Distribution of Cephalopoda (no/m ) Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Gastropod larvae (no/ m ).... -. Fig..Distribution of Cephalopoda (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Fig..Distribution of Gastropod larvae (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the of..... --

- Fig..Distribution of Bivalve larvae (no/m ) Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Bivalve larvae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Fig..Distribution of Echinodermata larvae (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the of - Fig..Distribution of Echinodermata larvae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of --

- Fig..Distribution of Larvacean (no/m ) Fig..Distribution of Larvacean (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Thaliacea (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular - Fig..Distribution of Thaliacea (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of --

Fig..Distribution of Brachiopoda larvae (no/ m ) Fig..Distribution of Crustacean Nauplii (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the of -..... -. Fig..Distribution of Brachiopoda larvae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Fig..Distribution of Crustacean Nauplii (no/ m ) during post-monsoon period in the.... -. --

Fig..Distribution of Fish eggs (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular - Fig..Distribution of Fish eggs (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular - Fig..Distribution of Fish larvae (no/m ) during pre-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular Fig..Distribution of Fish larvae (no/m ) during post-monsoon period in the Gulf of Thailand and the east coast of Peninsular --

References Brinton, E.. Zooplankton abundance in the Gulf of Thailand and South China Sea. Scripps Inst. Oceanogr., SIO-Ref. (-):- Chayakul, R.. Larvae and juveniles fishes occurring in the Gulf of Thailand. Tech. Paper of Mar. Res. Sur. Team, No. /. p. Hopcroft, R. R. and J. C. Roff.. Phytoplankton size fractions in a tropical neretic ecosystem near Kingston, Jamica. J. Plank. Res. : -. Sribyatta, P.. Variation of zooplankton abundance in the Gulf of Thailand -. Tech. Paper No /. Mar. Fish. Envir. Group, Mar. Fish.Div., Dept. of Fish. p. Sudara, S. and A, Udomkit.. Distribution of Important Zooplankton in the Inner Part of the Gulf of Thailand. Proceedings of the third seminar on The Water Quality and the Quality of Living Resources in Thai Waters. p. Suvapepun, S. and W. Suwanrumpha,. Distribution of copepod in the Inner Gulf and the Western Coast of the Gulf of Thailand. Proc. Indo-Pacific Fish. Coun.,(II): - Suvapepun, S.. Variability of plankton quantity in the Inner Gulf of Thailand. Mar. Fish. Lab., Tech. Paper No /. pp. Suvapepun, S.. Variability of plankton quantity off the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand. Tech. Paper No /. Mar. Fish. Envir. Group, Mar. Fish. Div., Dept of Fish.. p. Suvapepun, S.. Zooplankton in the Gulf of Thailand. Thai Fish. Gaz.. (): p. -. Suwanrumpha, W.. The seasonal abundance of plankton in the Inner Gulf of Thailand in relation to the ichthyoplankton, salinity and temperature. Mar. Fish. Lab.,Tech. Paper No. /. p. Suwanrumpha, W. a. Zooplankton in the Inner Gulf of Thailand. I. Seasonal abundance and distribution of zooplankton -. Tech. Paper No /. Mar. Fish. Envir. Group, Mar. Fish. Div., Dept. of Fish. p. Suwanrumpha, W. b. Zooplankton in the Inner Gulf of Thailand. II. Species group and seasonal variation in the copepod -. Tech. Paper No /. Mar. Fish. Envir. Group, Mar. Fish. Div., Dept. of Fish.. p. Suwanrumpha, W.. Distribution of salps species in the Gulf of Thailand. Marine Fish. Envir. Group, Mar. Fish. Div., Dept of Fish. p. Temiyavanich, S.. Distribution and abundances of zooplankton along the Eastern Coastline of the Inner Gulf of Thailand. Proceedings of the third seminar on The Water Quality and the Quality of Living Resources in Thai Waters. p. Tubtimsang, w. a. Distribution of some invertebrate larvae in the Gulf of Thailand. Tech. Paper No /. Aquatic animal Group, Mar. Fish. Div, Dept. of Fish. p. Tubtimsang, w. b. Observation on the distribution of shrimp larvae in the Gulf of Thailand. Tech. Paper No /. Aquatic animal Group, Mar. Fish. Div., Dept. of Fish. p. --